Demountable revolving shelf assembly for kitchen cabinets and the like



Jan. 15, 1957 R. A. JORGENSEN 2,777,585 DEMOUNTABLE REVOLVING SHELF ASSEMBLY FDR KITCHEN CABINETS AND THE LIKE Filed April 13, 1955 INVENTOR. Roberi' H. Jorge 11 Sen United States Patent 6 DEMOUNTABLE REVOLVING SHELF ASSEMBLY FOR HTCHEN CABINETS "AND THE'LIKE Robert A. Jorgensen, vEdmongls, Wash assignor to Washington Steel Products; 'Inc;,Taco'ma, WBSlL, a corporation of Washington ApplicationApriLlli, 1953; Serial-No. 348,418

'2'Claims; 4 (Cl; 211-139) This invention relates to a demountable revolving shelf assembly of the class commonly known as Lazy Susans for installation inkitchen cabinetsand'the like. It also relates toa rotaryshelf-supporting: bearing assembly for mounting and supporting-suchshelves.

It is a primary-purpose of the present invention to provide a revolvingshelf assembly-which is-easily installed even in cabinets -whichare difficult of access.

It is another object of-r'this invention to provide a revolving shelf assembly which is applicable to installationin--cabinets of a' widevarriety' of designs and dimensions.

Another object of this invention is the provision of a revolving shelf assembly which is safe and sure in its operation.

Another object of this invention is the provision of a revolving shelf assembly which is readily demountable for various purposes, such as its temporary removal, the affixation of shelves of different dimensions or design, or the alteration of the surrounding cabinet work.

Still a further object of this invention is the provision of a revolving shelf assembly which may be easily mounted in precise alignment so that maximum efliciency of operation is obtained.

The manner in which the foregoing and other objects of this invention are accomplished will be apparent e from the accompanying specification and claims considered together with the drawings wherein:

Figure l is a view in perspective of a typical revolving shelf assembly of the presently described class;

Figure 2 is a view in side elevation partly broken away illustrating the manner of mounting the presently described revolving shelf assembly;

Figure 3 is a view in side elevation partly broken away illustrating the presently described revolving shelf assembly in its operative position; and

Figure 4 is a detail sectional view taken along lines 44 of Figure 3.

As is apparent from Figure l, the revolving shelf assembly of this invention is adapted for installation in corners, for example, of kitchen cabinets represented generally at 10. The assembly may include a central post 12, rotatably mounted between a pair of vertically spaced apart support members 14, 16. On the post are a plural ity of cut away, spaced shelves 18, 20, 22 suitably mounted as by means of collars 23.

To the cut away portions of the shelves are afiixed a pair of edge abutting face panels 24, 26. Thus the assembly may be adjusted to a first position wherein shelves 18, 20, and 22 are brought to the front, making them accessible, and to a second position in which panels 24, 26 are brought to the front, aligned with the other front panels of the cabinet. As a result, the assembly may be employed to convert inaccessible corner areas to readily accessible, useful storage space.

The manner of mounting the presently described revolving shelf assembly is illustrated in Figures 2, 3 and 4. Affixed to the lower structural member 14 is a pivot pin or spindle 28 providedwithia base'jplate 30; Theupper surface of pivot pin 28 is recessed or dished toaccommodate a ball bearing 32.

. To rotatably mount post 12 on pivot piii 28' there is provideda thimble 34having at its openend anannular flange 36. Thimble 34 is' dimensioned to nestover'pivot pin 28 and to rest on ball 'beariri'gj 32. The lower endfof post 12 is hollowand dimensioned to nest over thirnble 34, resting on flange 36. Free rotatability' thus is obtained even though'a 'subst'an tial'load is'pl'aced'" UpO'nfslifilYS' 18, 20 and 22'.

' A second pivotpin 40; provided with base plate 42and an annular groove44 a spaced distancefrom" its end is mounted'on the upper support member' 16, substantially aligned with pivot pin 28' and with post ,12'when the'latter is vertical. Pivot pin 40 and post'12iare' dimensioned relative to each other so that when 'the post rests on flange 36 of thimble '34 there a clearance distance between the top of the post and the lower edge of pivotpin 40. Accordingly, as is illustratedin Figure-Zythepost may be readily movedfrom a firstpositionyinwhich it is jnot aligned with pin 40 to a secondyposition in whichit is aligned therewith.

' Means are provided for rotatably'mounting'the'upper end of post 12- and for releasably connecting the post to upper pivot pin 40. Such means comprise the bushing or sleeve 46 having an annular flange 48.

Bushing 46 is dimensioned to nest within the upper hollow end of post 12 with flange 48 resting thereupon. The bore 46 of bushing 46 is of such a dimension as to rotatably enclose that portion of pivot pin 40, which is below groove 44. Hence when bushing 46 is in its operative position nesting within the bore of post 12, the post and the shelves which it supports are freely rotatable between the support members.

Means then are provided for releasably maintaining the bushing in its operative position interconnecting pivot pin 46 and post 12 since during operation of the assembly, particularly if an uneven load is placed upon it, the bushing might work upwardly, releasing the post with catastrophic results. Accordingly, in the illustrated embodiment, keeper means are provided in the form of a keeper spring 50 dimensioned to bed in groove 44 on the pivot pm.

The revolving shelf assembly of this invention is easily and accurately installed and operated. To install the assembly, pivot pins 28 and 40 first are affixed to their respective support members in substantial alignment with each other. Ball bearing 32 is placed in the recess of pin 28 and thimble 34 placed thereover. Post 12, which may comprise standard thin wall electrical conduit cut to length, then is placed over thimble 34 until it rests on flange 36 thereof. I

Bushing 46 next is slipped over pin 40 and post 12 shifted to a vertical position, after which the bushing is dropped into the opening at the top of the post. After checking the operation of the assembly, post 12 may be removed and shelves 18, 2t and 22 or their equivalents mounted thereon in any desired manner, as by means of collars 23. The assembly procedure then may be repeated, keeper spring 50 being inserted in groove 44 when all the parts are in place. This will maintain them securely in their proper relationship to each other until it is desired to remove the post and shelves for some purpose.

Thus it will be apparent that by the present invention I have provided a revolving shelf assembly and a supporting bearing assembly therefor which is easily and accurately installed and operable in a variety of installations. Also, it operates freely and is readily demountable when desired. Finally, it is safe in operation since the keeper means prevents the inadvertent escape of bushing 46 from post 12 with consequent upsetting of the shelves.

It is to be understood that the form of my invention herewith shown anddescribed, is to be taken as a preferred example of the same, and that various changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts may be resorted to, without departing from the spirit of my invention, or the scope of the subjoined claims.

\ Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. An easily assembled demountable revolving shelf assembly comprising a pair of vertically spaced structural supports, first pivot means mounted on the inner side of the lower of said supports, avertical supporting post rotatably mounted onand supported by said first pivot means, shelves surrounding and supported bytsaid post, second pivot means mounted on the inner side of the upper of said supports in axial alignment with, said first pivot means, the end of the post remote from said first pivot means being tubular, the post being dimensioned so that said remote end is spaced from the inner end of said secondpivot means when said post is rotatably mounted on and supported by said first pivot means, said second pivot means comprising a spindle projecting downwardly from said upper support, connecting means slidably disposed onsaid spindle, said connecting means havinga lower po rtion dimensioned to fit within the bore defined by the tubular portion of said post and an upwardly dis posed outwardly extending flange limiting the movement of said connecting means within the bore of said post, said connecting means being longer than the space between the inner end of said spindle and the said remote end of said post and shorter than the space between the upper support and the remote end of the post, keeper means intermediate the length of said spindle and acting as a stop against the upper portion of said connecting means to retain the lower portion of said connecting means within said bore and securing means movably securing said keeper means to said spindle to permit said connecting means to he slid out of engagement with said post and to permit removal and insertion of said post while said post is supported by said first pivot means.

2. A revolving shelf assembly a s'recitedin claim 1 in which said securing means includes an annular groove positioned intermediate the length of said spindle and said keeper means is constituted by a spring releasably secured about said spindle in the groove thereof.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,101,849 Hines June 30, 1914 1,920,546' Brunner ..'Aug. 1, 1933 2,095,932 Kucera Oct. 12, 1937 2,244,950 Jones June 10, 1941 2,338,324 Floyd Ian. 4, 1944 2,527,132,, Jackson et al.- Oct. 24, 1950 FOREIGN PATENTS 7 148,092 France MarQZS, 1882 

